A New Brunswick weed grower has agreed to buy Edmonton-based Aurora Cannabis Inc. for about $561 million, topping the value of a hostile offer from Curaleaf Holdings Inc., of Connecticut. Miguel Martin, Aurora’s executive chairman and chief executive, said the proposed takeover by Organigram Global Inc. would combine Aurora’s strengths in medical cannabis internationally with Organigram’s dominance in Canadian recreational cannabis. The two companies have more to gain together, he said. “We think there’s a lot of upside internationally and globally,” Martin said. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of will soon be in your inbox. We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Aurora was once a top player in Canada, with a sprawling greenhouse near the Edmonton International Airport that was said to be the largest of its kind in the world, covering an area the size of about 14 football fields. Heading into legalization of recreational cannabis, the company was also a consolidator that bought rivals in a quest to become a globally dominant producer. But after Ottawa officially legalized sales in the fall of 2018, the hype around legal weed faded fast as the industry failed to live up to lofty expectations for growth. By the spring of 2022, Aurura decided to close its massive greenhouse near Edmonton after reporting a sharp loss and falling sales with weaker-than-expected prices. In the deal announced this week, Aurora shareholders can take $7.80 a share in cash, in Organigram shares, or a mix of the two, the companies said. The cash is capped at $253.6 million, less than half the deal’s value, which means some who ask for cash will get shares instead. The stock closed at $7.24 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Wednesday, still under the $7.80 offer price. The total price tag — $561 million — represents a sharp decline from Aurora’s implied value at the peak of cannabis hype in Canada. Aurora has lost well over 90 per cent of its value since then. Aurora would not address the fall in its share price. Spokesperson Kate Hillyar said in an email statement that the company cannot comment on market dynamics or stock performance, “which we don’t control.” Curaleaf went straight to Aurora shareholders in August, saying the board would not negotiate, and raised its offer in early October to a value of US$5 a share. Aurora’s board unanimously rejected the hostile bid as amended. Organigram chief executive James Yamanaka, who spent more than 20 years at British American Tobacco before taking the top job in January, said Aurora shareholders are better off with his offer. “I think we do have what I think is a clearly superior offer.” The offer is a premium to the existing bid, depending on the day, and its higher cash component gives shareholders “a much quicker path to liquidity if they want to.” Yamanaka took a reporter’s call from Moncton, N.B., after a few very long nights. “First of all, I’m tired,” he said, but he is “quite excited” about the deal. The more the two sides worked on it, the clearer it became that the businesses complement each other, and “I think the culture fits.” Martin said there are “mixed emotions” when someone is buying your company. But he works for shareholders, and he agrees this is their best outcome. “That’s your job, and that’s what you do.” Organigram would gain access to Aurora’s European-certified flower and processing. Aurora would gain Organigram’s extra capacity in Moncton, and the combined company would be a clear leader in medical cannabis in Germany, Poland, Australia and New Zealand, Yamanaka said. Aurora has operations in Germany, and the deal needs clearance from the German government under its foreign investment rules. What happens to Aurora’s Edmonton office is not settled. Martin said the company is “technically based in Edmonton” but runs a virtual model, with most of its employee
También lo cubren: Edmonton Journal (Canadá).
Ver más en News Today